How to Save a Life
by Cinderfire16
Summary: "How could you do this to Falconpaw!"
1. The Crime

**Hello fellow readers! This is the result of a very strange dream. I hope you like it!**

"Hey, Falconpaw, can we talk?" The bracken-colored tom froze but shook himself out and kept walking toward the fresh-kill pile. His mentor, Paleface, was in the nursery with his mate and newborn kits and it was the perfect opportunity to finally eat because Paleface worked him to the bone and he hadn't had a morsel all day. It was around sunset now.

"What, Swiftpaw?" He sighed. Swiftpaw wasn't horrible to him, not like the other cats in his Clan. They all seemed to know something he didn't and they hated him for it. The leader turned a blind eye to it all but Forreststar didn't notice him much so that was to be expected. Apparently the black and white green-eyed apprentice before him didn't know what everyone else did, or she didn't care, which would be amazing if it weren't too good to be true.

"Come on, silly furball. Grab some fresh-kill and let's go!" She chirped. He smiled inside. She seemed pretty eager to be alone with him, though he couldn't fathom why. The others thought nothing of him. He was nothing to them.

"Okay." He muttered, grabbing a squirrel off the pile. Swiftpaw took a large mouse and they padded toward the entrance.

"Where are you going with that thing, Swiftpaw?" Adderclaw was a new warrior warrior who had finished his vigil just that morning. The red-brown tom took great joy in taunting Falconpaw for whatever reason he could find. The suck-up always padded after Paleface and the other senior warriors. Swiftpaw rolled her eyes and walked out of camp. Falconpaw was glad, if only to get away from the countless cats who had hated him for no reason. The two apprentices raced into the forest, fur whipping in the wind as they ran ran ran... Swiftpaw stopped and Falconpaw crashed into her, sending them head-over -tail into the clearing.

"We're here." Swiftpaw informed him. He got to his paws, muttering apologies as she did the same. She brushed her tail against his mouth, silencing him.

"It's okay." She said. The two apprentices sat down to eat.

"I found this place not too long ago, and I knew I had to show you."

"Why?" Falconpaw wondered as he buried the bones of the squirrel.

"Because... I like you, Falconpaw. I don't see why everyone else treats you so badly because you're the best cat any Clan could ask for!" We'll, that was new...

"Thanks?" He didn't really know what to say to that. Someone... Appreciated him? Saw a need off his existence? The idea was all he ever wanted, but it seemed too good to be true!

"There are nice cats in StarClan, right? Cats like you?" He blurted out. "I would think so." Swiftpaw was confused. Why was he talking about StarClan?

"I'll go there then."

"Falconpaw, StarClan isn't meant for cats to visit. It's where cats go when they die."

"It's not like there's anyone here who likes me except for you, but you'll be okay. Plenty of cats like you."

"Falconpaw, no! What are you saying?! Why do you want to go to StarClan so badly? Surely life can't be so bad that you want to die?!" Swiftpaw wailed.

"I don't think I do, but it's the only way the Clan will listen. Paleface said that actions speak louder than words. If they hate me so much then I'll leave. The only place with nice cats is StarClan, so that's where I'll go."

"Falconpaw, there are nice cats in other Clans! Even outside the Clans! We can go there! We don't have to go to StarClan!"

"I don't like ThunderClan, Swiftpaw. What makes you think anyone else will treat me any better? You're the only cat who likes me. I don't want you to come with me. You have the rest of the Clan to lean on. I don't, have that. StarClan can give me that!"

"There has to be another way! Falconpaw, I can't lose you!"

"You'll be okay. You can join me after you've lived."

Swiftpaw sighed and nodded. She wasn't going to get him to believe her. He was too far gone... and he was probably right.

"I'll make sure all the Clans remember you, Falconpaw. No cat will ever forget you."

"I don't want to be remembered, Swiftpaw. I want to be free. I want you to be free too, but you have to wait a bit. Cats still like you. You have to make sure that you're ready."

"Okay, Falconpaw. I'll make sure." She leaned forward to nuzzle him and he licked her forehead.

"Swiftpaw?" The black-and-white she-cat turned back to her friend.

"I love you too." She crashed into him with a purr. "I still have to go."

"I'll see you in StarClan then, and no one will forget this, forget us."

Swiftpaw awoke to find that Falconpaw had kept his word. He was well and truly gone.


	2. Suspects and Reactions

What happened?" Cats asked her when she returned to camp. She was too upset to bother with most of her Clanmates. She stormed into Forreststar's den, ignoring the rest.

"Falconpaw is dead because of you." She murmured. His mate, Snowclaw, spat in shock.

"How dare you accuse your leader of a crime he didn't commit?! The outraged queen hissed. "That wretched menace deserved to die anyway! What has he brought to our Clan but misery and pain?" She sneered.

"It's your fault too. Every cat who treated him like that, who told him that he was nothing, you're all at fault for this!" She snarled.

"What happened, Swiftpaw? I assume you spoke with him. What did Falconpaw say?"

"He said that he had to go to StarClan because that was the only place with nice cats, with cats who wouldn't treat him like he was the dirt beneath their paws, who would treat him like he meant something!" She screeched. "What kind of cats are we, what kind of Clan is this that nobody cares?! None of you asked where Falconpaw was, and I bet you won't even look for him! You're all so cruel that I bet ShadowClan is better than you! I hate you! I hate you all! How could you do this to him?! How could you just stare at your paws when an apprentice is dead? Falconpaw is dead because you fox-hearts treated him like mouse-dung! What reason could any of you possibly have?"

Snowclaw stepped forward.

"He was my kit. I had every right to do with him as I pleased! He reminded me of that terrible rogue who dared to violate a she-cat's most sacred privacy! I didn't want him to be alive much less to have to raise him! That miserable excuse for a scrap of fur was dead to me from the moment he was born! I prayed to StarClan that he word join them but he didn't! I'm glad he's dead!"

Swiftpaw snarled and launched herself off the Highrock. She bit and clawed at Snowclaw until Forreststar yanked her away and some cat pinned her down.

"You..." The brown leader was devastated. "He was a kit, Snowclaw! It shouldn't have mattered how he came into the world! He was your kit! I would have cared for him as my own had I known... oh StarClan how mouse-brained am I?! And what excuse do the rest of you have?!" Forrest star snapped to the rest of the Clan. "What

Would possibly be so wrong with Falconpaw that you were so cruel?!"

No cat spoke. Of course not. They were all too afraid.

"Tonight, I will go to the Moonpool and consult with StarClan. This will be resolved and this will never happen again! When we go to the Gathering tomorrow, I will report Falconpaw's death and Swiftpaw and Snowclaw will say everything that was said today. You will all come to this Gathering and witness to shame we have placed on ThunderClan."


	3. We Meet At StarClan's Gathering

That night, he trekked to the Moonpool alone, despite the protests of his Clanmates. No cat was to be hurt on the sacred journey, and if he was then all the better for it. He truly was a despicable cat, a miserable excuse for a leader.

"Who goes there?!" The approaching cat reeked of WindClan.

"It's Forreststar, and I'm headed for the Moonpool."

The cat stepped into his line of sight and he was surprised to see the Breezestar before him.

"Is everything alright with ThunderClan? No trouble, I hope?"

"I made a terrible mistake, Breezestar, and now one of my young cats has paid the price with their lives. You'll hear about it tomorrow, but I must ask StarClan's forgiveness."

"Good luck, Forreststar. I hope you find what you seek. "

* * *

He awoke in a clearing lined with trees. The moon shone bright and the undergrowth looked healthy and beautiful. It was forever greenleaf in StarClan.

"Forreststar?" The very cat he was looking for stared at him. Surprise clouded the young tom's gaze and now that the leader looked, he realized that his son's pelt looked far better now. Remnants of depression showed in his serious gaze, which only made Forreststar more angry. No cat should have been so desperate...

"I know I'm not Swiftpaw, but I was hoping we could talk." The leader mewed. His voice was far calmer than he felt.

"I saw what happened when she got back... I'm sorry you were so upset."

"No, Falconpaw. You are not at fault. None of this is your fault. Snowclaw was wrong to let others abuse you, and I was wrong for not noticing until it was too late."

"What do you mean? No one could tell me why they were all apologizing!"

"I'm sorry, Falconpaw. Snowclaw abandoned you and I let her. There was no reason for you to have suffered so much. You did absolutely nothing wrong."

"But why did Snowclaw hate me?! She said she was my mother! Deerfur never treated Swiftpaw like that! You never said anything mean! Why is everyone sorry?!"

"Snowclaw was attacked by a rogue, Falconpaw, and moons later, she bore his kits. Do you know what I'm trying to say?"

"She doesn't like me because I'm HalfClan? Is that it?"

"No, Falconpaw. It's not that you're HalfClan... she didn't want the rogue's kits, Falconpaw. They reminded her of the rogue and the fact that she was attacked so brutally. Do you understand?"

The young tom's eyes darkened with a wisdom far beyond his eight moons.

"She thinks of the rogue whenever she sees me... does that mean she thinks I'll act like him?" Falconpaw was rightly disgusted.

"Why? The only she-cat who even looked at me was Swiftpaw, and I never thought of having kits anyway!" An idea flashed through his head and his eyes brightened.

"If you tell the others that they were wrong, do you think they'll like me? I want Swiftpaw and Snowclaw to be happy, Forreststar! You have to tell them!"

The brown leader did his best to hide his surprise.

"Of course." He assured the younger tom as he buried his face in his son's fur. "Of course I'll tell them... I don't know why we were so blind. You truly are the best of us all."

"Tell Swiftpaw I love her, and that she has to live. We'll have the rest of forever to be together, I promise."

"I'll tell her, Falconpaw. I promise."

* * *

"Cats of all Clans, ThunderClan has made a grave mistake. One that has almost cost us two lives." Forreststar began solemnly. He'd allowed the other three leaders to go before him and each report of bountiful prey and new kits made him miss Falconpaw all the more.

"One of our apprentices, Falconpaw, was reported dead by Swiftpaw. She spoke with him before he left, and I spoke with him by the grace of StarClan. Falconpaw was depressed, and for good reason. It was revealed by Snowclaw that Falconpaw was one of her kits. We were led to believe that he was a rogue, and you know how we Clan cats feel about outsiders, but we took it too far, and for that reason, Falconpaw walks among StarClan as he more than deserves" Forreststar broke off for a bit.

"I…" He choked on his words. "I saw him in StarClan, and he wanted… he wanted to be normal. He said Snowclaw and Swiftpaw and everyone else should be happy, and that no, Snowclaw, he would not turn out like that rogue, no matter what you say. He truly was the best of us. I tell you this now because only one cat in my Clan knows all of this, and that is Swiftpaw. She is literally the only cat in ThunderClan who has not made the mistake we all did. She is the only one who cared for him, and that's wrong. For all our pride as ThunderClan cats, as Clan cats, we have let down StarClan in the biggest way there is. Thank you for being so patient and hearing Falconpaw's story."

The clearing was quiet by the time Forreststar was done, and Swiftpaw made her way to the base of the tree as the brown leader hopped to the ground.

"Thank you," She muttered, eyes bright with pain. "Hopefully they'll remember us now."

"I wish I had done more for him… I plan on sitting vigil for Falconpaw. Not in our camp, but on the Island, where I can mourn undisturbed by those who hated him. You are welcome to join me, if you wish."

"Of course," The black and white she-cat mewed happily. "Let me know when you leave."

* * *

"Swiftpaw's gone!" Deerfur shrieked as she pelted out of the warriors den and nearly tackled Forreststar the next morning. The older leader sighed, their secret weighing on his shoulders more than ever. In a few moments, he would have to tell the Clan what Deerfur already knew…

"She is."


End file.
